On March 22, at Dong Kinh Nghia Thuc Square - Hanoi, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and the Hanoi People's Committee organized the Olympic Running Day - For National Health - For National Security in 2026.
The race is organized in a vibrant emulation atmosphere of the entire Party, army, and people to celebrate the success of the 14th National Party Congress; towards the 80th anniversary of Uncle Ho's call for the whole people to practice physical exercise and sports; 80th anniversary of the Traditional Day of the Sports sector (March 27, 1946 - March 27, 2026); 80th anniversary of the Traditional Day of the People's Security Forces (July 12, 1946 - July 12, 2026).
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Senior Lieutenant General Le Quoc Hung - Member of the Party Central Committee, Deputy Minister of Public Security - said: "When we were born, no matter what the circumstances, our vast and beloved people always paid special attention to the movement for the whole people to exercise.
On March 27, 1946, President Ho Chi Minh called: Maintain democracy, build the country, create a new life, everything needs health to be successful. Each weak citizen means the whole country is weak, each healthy citizen means contributing to the whole country being healthy.
So exercising and nourishing health is the duty of every patriot... When the people are strong, the country is prosperous. I hope our compatriots all try to exercise. I myself, I exercise every day.
Over 80 years, President Ho Chi Minh's Call for the whole people to practice physical exercise and sports has always been a guiding principle for the physical education and sports work of the entire Party, people, and army.
Therefore, the Olympic Running Day - For National Health - For National Security in 2026 at Dong Kinh Nghia Thuc Square with the participation of more than 10,000 people including officials, soldiers, employees of central and local agencies and businesses and people of central wards of the City.
The 2026 Olympic Running Day, organized simultaneously throughout provinces, cities, communes, wards, and special economic zones today, is not just a simple sports activity but a political activity of profound significance with the belief in a strong Vietnam entering a new era.
This is the clearest proof of the spirit of national unity, the determination to train the body of the entire people for the noble goal:'Healthy to build and protect the Fatherland'.
According to the Hanoi People's Committee, in response to the 2026 Olympic Running Day, 126 communes and wards of the Capital have simultaneously deployed the movement in most grassroots units, communes, wards, towns, schools...
This is a program of widespread social significance, aimed at propagating to all classes of people about the meaning of physical training, improving physical fitness, and human stature in the period of integration and development.
Speaking at the launching ceremony, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism - Hoang Dao Cuong - said: "Implementing the policy of the Party and State, in the past time, the campaign "All people practice physical exercise following the example of the great Uncle Ho" has been deployed deeply and widely throughout the country, attracting the active participation of a large number of people from all walks of life.
To date, the rate of people participating in regular physical exercise reaches about 38.5% of the population; the rate of sports families reaches about 28.9% of households; the system of more than 100,000 sports clubs is operating nationwide. These figures show that the movement has truly entered social life, contributing to improving community health and building a healthy cultural environment.
Along with that, physical education in schools is implemented synchronously, the sports movement in the armed forces continues to be maintained and developed, contributing to improving physical strength and readiness to perform tasks in the new situation".
To continue to develop the movement in the coming time, Deputy Minister Hoang Dao Cuong requested ministries, branches, and localities to continue to pay attention to directing propaganda work, mobilizing people to participate in training, investing in completing the grassroots sports institution system, and diversifying forms of physical education and sports activities suitable for each target group.
